The South County Water Supply Program

About the Program
The South County Water Supply Program is designed to provide supplemental water supplies for the Cities of Manteca, Escalon, Lathrop and Tracy, CA. It involves the construction of a water treatment facility near Woodward Reservoir in Stanislaus County and the installation of over 37 miles of a buried pipeline from Woodward Reservoir to
the participating cities. The total cost for the project is estimated at $126 Million.

The project is sponsored by the South San Joaquin Irrigation District and will be completed by the summer of 2005. The system will be delivering an average of 30 million gallons of water per day (mgd) to the Cities of Manteca, Tracy and Lathrop by the end of Phase I. Escalon will join the program in Phase II in 2010-12 and water delivery capabilities will increase to an average of 44 mgd by the end of the phase.

The Pipeline Route

The pipeline route will run west from Woodward Reservoir to Manteca, cross Highway 99, turn south to Highway 120, cross the San Joaquin River near Interstate 5 and continue southwest to Tracy. The route will use primarily public rightsof- way.

Contracts Awarded

Contract No. 4 included 5 pipeline
sections, which were awarded to three different construction firms to
make certain the pipeline can be built in phases to accommodate local residents and
businesses and to reduce any temporary inconveniences.

Program Benefits

The South County Water Supply Program is a unique project for this region. It is a cooperative effort funded by the South San Joaquin Irrigation District and the Cities to bring a reliable, supplemental source of high quality drinking water to the area. Other benefits include:

  1. Increases regional groundwater levels in the area that have declined for years.
  2. Improves water quality by reducing reliance on groundwater.
  3. Balancing agricultural and urban needs that often compete for the same supply.
  4. Uses conserved water from SSJID and puts it to other beneficial uses.
  5. Keeps conserved water in the District and County for beneficial use in the area.

Pipeline Manufactured Locally

Ameron International's Water Transmission Group was awarded Sections 1 through 5 with a total value of over $21 Million. Section 1 included 52,500 feet of 30-inch Cement Mortar Lined, Tape Wrapped Steel Pipe to Standards AWWA C200, C205 and C214 in 40-foot laying lengths as specified by the engineering consultant for all five pipeline sections. Section 2 comprised of 28,600 feet of 36-inch Cement Mortar Lined, Tape Wrapped or Mortar Coated Steel Pipe to Standards AWWA C200, C205 and C214 and 11,300 feet of 48-inch AWWA Standard C303, Concrete Pressure Pipe, Bar-Wrapped, Steel Cylinder Type in 40-foot laying lengths. Section 3 included 36,700 feet of 48-inch
AWWA Standard C303, Concrete Pressure Pipe, Bar-Wrapped, Steel Cylinder Type in 40-foot laying lengths. Section 4 consisted of 36,900 feet of 48-inch AWWA Standard C303, Concrete Pressure Pipe, Bar-Wrapped, Steel Cylinder Type in 40-foot laying lengths. Section 5 included 30,700 feet of 54-inch and 100 feet of 48-inch AWWA Standard C303, Concrete Pressure Pipe, Bar-Wrapped, Steel Cylinder Type in 40-foot laying lengths.

Ameron International manufactured the pipe at its Tracy, CA facility, which is located in San Joaquin County. The Ameron plant is within 300 feet of the terminus of the pipeline for the City of Tracy. Manufacturing began in earnest August 2003 with production dedicated to the Program's pipeline and work will be completed by end of May 2004.

"Ameron is one of the top pipe manufacturers in the world. We are fortunate to have such a facility right here in San Joaquin County," said Steve Shroud, General Manager for the South San Joaquin Irrigation District. " It benefits our
project in terms of cost and timely delivery."

The pipeline should be the first completed portion of the Water Supply Program and Ameron is proud to be a part of the earliest section that is installed and operational.